Have You Reviewed Your Safety Policy Lately?

April 23, 2014 | Staffing Blog

Construction, manufacturing and warehouse workers are often at a higher risk for workplace injuries. According to the U.S. Department of Labor, 4,383 workers were killed on the job in 2012. Workplace safety is a serious issue and not adhering to safety policies and procedures not only leads to injuries or even fatalities but also workers’ compensation claims, lost productivity and lost revenue. 

Having the proper safety training and taking safety seriously in your business can have a dramatic impact on the overall health and wellbeing of both your workers and your business’ bottom line. 

How can you best improve worker safety? 

• Establish a safety committee. While safety should be on everyone’s mind, having an dedicated group of individuals focused on the issue goes a long way to demonstrating how seriously your business takes workplace safety. The committee can organize safety meetings and trainings as well as periodic reviews of policies and procedures to make recommendations to upper management.
• Lead by example. Don’t expect your employees to take safety seriously if your management team isn’t.
• Reconsider your “days without incident” promotions. Publicizing the number of days your company has been accident-free can deter employees from pointing out possible safety hazards or reporting accidents for fear of disrupting the promotion. Instead, reward safe behaviors all the time. 
• Encourage employees to report any problems. Having an open line of communication when it comes to safety can help you avoid serious injuries in the future. Give employees a simple – and anonymous – option for reporting potential safety violations or supervisors who may be looking the other way.
• Work with a staffing agency that puts as high a priority on safety as you do. At Allegiance Staffing, we adhere to higher safety standards than many of our peers in the industry. We go to extra lengths to give workers the necessary safety training that minimizes the risk of accident and injury on your site. In fact, the incident rate for Allegiance is just 11 per 200,000 man hours, compared to the staffing industry average of 41. 

On a quarterly basis, review your safety procedures and make adjustments to reflect any changes in the work environment. That’s also a good time to review the basics as well as any modifications with employees. By devoting just a little extra attention to your safety program you can ensure your company is not only compliant with OSHA regulations but that you are doing your best to protect the company’s most important asset – the employees.